Limited run of commemorative Ed Sheeran sake on sale from 8 April

The perfect collaboration for Ed’s fans and alcoholics, or is it for alcoholic Ed Sheeran fans? Nah Put up a record of him and sip slowly from a tiny cup of this delicious sake…it’s paradise!

Although it’s sure to make one scratch their head at first, it actually makes a lot of sense when you think about it. Sheeran frequently mentions his tendency to tie one on with friends, and the sake industry is constantly trying to reach out to a more diverse crowd, namely younger people and women.

So, as Sheeran’s unique blend of folk-soul-pop returns to Japan on the Divide World Tour 2019, Konshi Brewing in Hyogo Prefecture decided the time was right to release Ed Sheeran Sake.

First, there’s the Ed Sheeran Junmai Ginjo sake which is a finely-produced beverage using only the purest ingredients, resulting in a mellow yet slightly crisp flavor with a tangy aromatic tinge, not unlike the hit “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You.” Speaking of which, the bottle is colored with the same orange as Sheeran’s breakout album +.

▼ Here’s an image of the album, pronounced “plus.”

▼ And here is the color-matching sake.

However, this is a standard sake, and as such has a relatively high alcohol content at around 15 percent. If you’d like something lighter and bubblier along the lines of “Shape of You,” then you may want to try a bottle of Ed Sheeran Sparkling Sake.

With only a 10 percent ABV, this carbonated sake comes in a blue labeled bottle using the same shades as his ÷ album (pronounced “divide”). Both bottles are also decorated with drawings of little cat paws that Konshi says belong to Sheeran’s own pet feline.

Each type is limited to 3,000 bottles and go on sale at AEON shopping centers across Japan from 8 April. They’re slightly on the pricey side at 2,000 yen (US$18) for a 720-milliliter (24-ounce) bottle, but it’s still low enough to take the plunge and pick one up. I mean, how often does a chance to score some Ed Sheeran sake come along?

Our excuses for the few posts recently, but we have been very busy with several ventures, our most recent venture as media fixer for foreign media crews has let us without any time to update our blog. Of course we haven’t left our customers in the wind, all ordered products have been successfully purchased and shipped. Thank you for your loyalty and trust.

JWS

Relax to the smell of….. chocolate

Who doesn’t love the scent of chocolate, right? Well you can now indulge in that sweet smell to your heart’s content with this unique product from Japanese incense maker Koukando. The Osaka-based company that has been creating incense-related products for over 130 years will be offering their new “The Memories of Scent: Chocolate (jumble pack)” incense starting February 1, just in time for Valentine’s Day, when everything turns chocolate-themed in Japan.

This is actually the third in their line of  “Express your thoughts with scents of precious memories” incense products, of which previous items included coffee and mikan (mandarin orange). According to Koukando the concept behind this product series is the sharing of fond everyday memories, as the incense in this line is designed as offerings for ancestors as opposed to personal recreational use. They took in customers’ opinions on over 50 different scents before deciding on chocolate as a smell that people associate with pleasant memories and something that you would give to loved ones. Specifically, the product’s scent is supposed to be that of sweet milk chocolate.

▼ The packaging definitely makes it look like a box of chocolates instead of incense.

The incense will be available next month at a price of 850 yen (US$7.42) per box at mass retailers, Buddhism and incense-related shops, and online as well. We have to admit, the smell of chocolate does seem to be soothing (or is that just for this writer?) and if you want to immerse yourself in that sweet scent, this incense might be the healthiest way to do so.

My wife will use it for a special “valentine” yoga class…..now all I have to do is find some chocolate inspired yoga music….

Source, images: @Press press release
Reference: Koukando website

rocketnews 24 edited by JWS

 

First fake food hairwear, now footwear!

Passers-by will be salivating over your delicious-looking footwear.

One of the most enticing things about eating out in Japan is the chance to gaze upon stunning food replicas in restaurant display windows, which show exactly what they have on offer, in beautifully recreated plastic form. The food samples are so popular that small versions can be purchased at specialty shops as souvenirs, but for those who want to add some delicacies to their wardrobe, Japanese retailer Fake Food Hatanaka is the place to go.

▼ Fancy a décolletage dripping with delectable citrus? This store has you covered.

Fake Food Hatanaka first wowed us back in 2013 with their head-turning range of jewellery and headbands, which caused a sensation online again this year with some more snazzy updates. While a browse through their collection turns up some curious products, some of their showstoppers can be found in the company’s footwear department, with two pairs of boots that look so refreshingly delicious we don’t know whether we want to wear them or bite into them!

The “Orange Cake Short Boots” retail for 10,800 yen (US$104), which is not a bad price, considering that most of the restaurant-style food replicas retail for 10,000 yen each.

The juicy-looking sliced oranges have been carefully arranged around each boot to enhance the realism and give them an aesthetically pleasing finish.

▼ The long Orange Cake Boots retail for 28,000 yen.

This design features an extra serving of delicious orange slices, with the base colour resembling a warm, cooked cake surface.

▼ It’s the perfect way to brighten up a dreary, rainy day!

Although with fruit as realistic as this, you might want to keep some oranges nearby to stop yourself from licking your boots!

If you want to add some zest to your shoe collection, head over to the Fake Food Hatanaka store, where the boots can be ordered online for shipping around the world. While you’re there, you might want to check out all their other amazing products, like drinks, sweets, and sandwiches too!

Source: Fake Food Hatanaka

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Love Japan’s realistic fake food? Now you can wear it on your head as an accessory!

No one wants to have egg on their face, but if you want in on your head, this Japanese company is happy to oblige.

One of the many great things about eating out in Japan is the fake food samples that are presented outside the restaurant. Sometimes it can be hard to tell what a dish will actually look like from a written menu, so they’re super helpful for helping you decide if a restaurant is right for you before you even go inside.

▼ So… pretty….
Oh right, I was supposed to be picking my dinner!

Wikipedia/Lombroso

Some of the fake food samples are really beautifully made, so much so that you may have thought about stealing them and wearing them on your head… maybe.

But now you don’t have to live a life of plastic-sample-stealing crime to get that food fashion you crave so badly. One of the companies that makes the realistic fake food for restaurants, Fake Food Hatanaka, has now released what it calls the ii-Fake line of accessories that feature their signature plastic dishes.

Here’s a sample of some of their wares:

▼ Nothing quite completes that “I woke up like this” look
like a pile of spaghetti and meat sauce in your hair.

▼ “Oh this old thing? I just tossed it up there this morning.”

▼ The egg on that tsukimi soba really brings out the yolks in your eyes.

▼ When you want to have emo hair but also
want to show your love of bacon and eggs to the world.

▼ One of my favorites for its subtlety: a bacon bow.

▼ And for those who want the complete
opposite of subtlety: the full-on Medusa-hair omelet soba!

If you’re a fan of Japanese food samples and crazy hair accessories, then check out Fake Food Hatanaka’s online accessory shop ii-fake. There’s much more available than what we’ve shown here, though a lot of it has been so popular it’s already sold out.

 

Source: Fake Food Hatanaka

rocketnews 24 edited by JWS

Limited Whiskey Pocky is the latest “must have” snack from Japan.

Like any finger food that’s covered in chocolate, Pocky is incredibly popular with kids. But being sweet without crossing over into cloying means grown-ups too can appreciate the crisp chocolate-coated pretzel sticks, so much so that it’s not uncommon to see Pocky served along with alcoholic drinks at adult parties or bars.

So it’s a natural progression for Glico, the makers of Pocky, to create a special version that’s designed specifically to be enjoyed with a stiff drink, which is how Adult Amber (“Otona no Kohaku” in Japanese) Pocky came about. Specifically, Adult Amber Pocky is to be enjoyed with a glass of whiskey. That makes it arguably even more old-school masculine than the sporadically offered Men’s Pocky, which features a less sweet variety of chocolate than the standard version. Similarly, Glico describes the chocolate used in the Adult Amber as rich and bitter, and also featuring the distinct aroma of whiskey.

But the deepest connection to whiskey is found in the dough used for the pretzel stick, which contains malt extract. Before being coated in chocolate, the stick is sprinkled with salt, with the resulting combination of flavors said to deliciously complement the grain alcohol you’re sipping.

This is actually Glico’s second time to offer the snack, as Adult Amber Whiskey was briefly available last November, before quickly selling out on Amazon’s Japanese site. This year, the company has prepared 300,000 boxes, which will once again be sold exclusively through Amazon, priced at 998 yen (US$9.70) for six packs shipped inside a round container styled after those used for packaging whiskey bottles. Adult Amber Pocky officially goes on sale October 25, and can be ordered domestically here (Which can be done risk-free by us).

Source: IT Media
Images: Pocky official website

Rocketnews 24 edited by JWS

The Japanese curry bible.

One of Japans most underrated food must be Japanese curry, everybody knows their sushi. sashimi and eh… cup noodles…but how many folks would associate curry with Japan? However, many who’ve had the fortunate opportunity to travel to this culinary paradise can vouch for the delicious taste of this underdog dish.

British food has always been the laughing stock of the international cuisines, an opinion which I personally don’t share, since I’ve eaten crickets, snake and a snapping turtle, and yes it tastes like it sounds. There is something comforting in a nice warm meat pie served with a “Late Knights Worm Catcher” (it’s a beer not some blue blooded bird). The Brits however never introduced those lovely pies in Japan, no they brought curry instead. The main reason why they brought curry was to prevent  beriberi (it sounds cuter than it is)on the long trips from England , the Japanese navy followed suit soon after.

Inago or grasshoppers on a stick…nah

Whereas “western” curry consists of curry powder mixed with a stew, Japanese curry is made by frying curry powder, flour, oil and a whole lot of other ingredients (apple!?)to make roux. For those not familiar with the term, it’s a hard inedible piece of concentrated curry…it resembles a big bar of chocolate.

Japanese curry is healthy and unlike other Asian curries, it is not so strong as for those with sensitive stomachs. I love Indian curry, but it makes me run to the toilet like 5 minutes after finishing a plate, yeah my stomach is that delicate.

J.curry however doesn’t contain strong spices which makes it the Californian roll under the curries, it’s easy to eat and approachable to anyone.

The great thing about Japanese curry is that you can cook it anyway you want; lots of vegetables, pork, chicken, beef, sea food, plain, with cheese etc etc, the curry serves as the base and the rest is up to you!

You can eat it with rice, nan, pasta, noodles, potatoes or drink it as a soup.

Curry is any Japanese housewife’s favorite dish, it takes 10 minuted to make, it contains all the food necessities and you can keep it for a week….

pork. carrots, potatoes, onions. green things…the whole vitamin alphabet on one plate!

Japanese curry comes in many flavors and levels of spiciness, but even though each curry tastes distinctively different than the other  the all around taste experience is the same, meaning that whatever brand you’ll buy, you’ll never end up with a bust.

Vermont curry a favorite in my house, still don’t get the reference to Vermont though. One pack creates 12 servings.

Ok how to make curry? Well it’s almost as easy as making a sandwich,  you cut your veggies and meat and bake them all in a deep pan, add water and let it boil (for the first time cooks under us, that’s when the water is bubbly hot. )Then you add the roux and boil it some more. Ready！Still don’t get it…ok here’s a video for the cooking challenged.

Curry is tasty during all seasons, and the great thing is that you can make it for small and big groups of people, like a class full of kids on a school trip, at the camping place with your family and your neighbors, the soup kitchen you help out or to show off your cooking skills to your in-laws.. and it’s really low on calories….

curry and anime go hand in hand

Hey Say JUMP curry commercial for you J-pop lovers!

Curry is basically cheap food, but you can make it as fancy as you want to.

Curry made with Kobe beef

You know how creative the Japanese can be with food, and curry is no exception here either.

Mum there’s a polar bear in my curry!

What kid wouldn’t eat this?

Curry often comes in three strenghts:

甘口＝”amaguchi” or sweet….kids often eat this

中辛＝”chukara” or average spicy

辛口＝”karakuchi” or spicey

These are the nutrition facts of an average plate of curry without vegetables etc:

energy 87kcal

carbohydrates 9.3g

protein 1.1g

House Java curry 

Click for the complete lineup

S&B Premium Golden

Click for the complete lineup

Vermont curry

Glico Premium curry

 

Lee curry 20x spiciness!

Topvalu Grand curry

Boncurry

 

Kokumaru curry

Dinner curry

Torokeru (melting) curry

Kaze to hikari (Wind and light) organic curry

 

 

Sapporo curry ramen (instant noodles)

Still on the edge? Well in the big cities you can often find some Japanese curries for sale, but if you don’t live near a big city…..? Companies won’t send you just one pack of curry, nope they expect you to buy a whole box..scary.

Well no worries mate, we at JWS can get you any kind of curry against the cheapest prices, we don’t order them online, no we go straight to the supermarket for you…we have a nice team of professional bargain shoppers/ bored housewives, who will find you the curry you want against the best price (and yes we enclose the supermarket receipt).

Japanese food which doesn’t involve raw fish,expensive beef or expects you to make noise when you eat it….try it, trust me you too will be a believer!

Serge Roso JWS

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Morinaga releases Attack on Titan ChocoBalls — packages feature mascot bird Kyurochan in cosplay!

Who doesn’t love light, crunchy chocolate snacks that you can pop easily into your mouth, right? The Chocoball chocolates, from major Japanese snack maker Morinaga, have long been a popular snack in Japan and available in a wide range of flavors over the years. And what do you get when you cross over a well-loved snack like that with one of the biggest manga/anime hits in recent years? You get an awesomely cool snack, like these Attack on Titan ChocoBalls that have just been released this week!

Yes, this chocolate and manga collaboration comes in three exciting flavors for a limited time, and we have to say Kyuro-chan, the mascot bird for the ChocoBall brand, definitely looks dashing and ready to take on some Titans as he appears on the packages cosplaying as the main characters from the manga! So, ready to take a look at the special collaborative ChocoBall products?

The three flavors are each available in five different packages, which when lined up together form a connecting picture.

▼Here are the five packages the peanut flavored Attack on Titan Chocoballs come in, priced at 70 yen (US$0.70) for a 24g (0.85oz) pack. They have a peanut and crisp center covered with chocolate — a classic combination. Four of the package designs feature Kyuro-chan as Eren, the manga’s protagonist, and one as Levi, the powerful warrior.

▼One of the four Eren designs:

▼And this is Kyuro-chan as Levi:

▼These are the five caramel flavored packages, with a sweet caramel center again covered in chocolate, sold at 70 yen for a 27g (0.95 oz) pack. Now, caramel and chocolate –that has to taste good together!

▼Four  of the deigns depict Kuro-chan as Armin, one of which is shown below.

▼The other package design shows Kuro-chan as Elwin:

▼And there’s also the strawberry flavored ChocoBalls, once again priced at 70 yen (US$0.70) for a 24g (0.85 oz) pack. This fruity flavor contains a white chocolate and rice puff center covered with strawberry chocolate. Yum … strawberry and white chocolate, that’s also a proven combination! 

▼Here’s one of the four designs for Kyuro-chan as Mikasa:

▼And this is Kyuro-chan as Zoë, the fifth design:

▼Oh, and when you open the small retractable lid  on the packets, you’ll be greeted by the face of the Colossus Titan!

▼And while the product below isn’t an Attack on Titan contribution, Morinaga announced at the same time that they are also selling this new ChocoBall flavor — the Shiratama Anmitsu (70 yen for a 25g [0.88oz] pack), which is a Japanese dessert made with agar jelly and  served with red bean paste, various fruits and small white mochi (rice cake) balls called shiratama. While certainly not a conventional flavor for a chocolate snack, Shiratama Anmitsu is a long-time favorite dessert with the Japanese and may be worth a try if you’re looking for something a little different.

All of these products will be available  until the end of August, so there’s still a bit of time to buy them if you’re going to be in Japan during that period　or you can have us send them, as a matter of fact, we can send you all the food you want from Japan…and as usual, for the lowest prices available.

As for us, you can be sure we’re quite happy to see one of our favorite snacks combined with one of our favorite manga. Go kyuro-chan, and fight the Titans for us, but make sure to leave us with plenty of sweet treats!

Source and photos: Morinaga & Co., Ltd. press release

Scary cute deep sea creature goods put a smile on your face.

YOU+MORE! a branch of mail order company Felissimo was created  produce and sell useful products with a humorous touch, hence the name YOU+MORE! (humor..witty uh?).

They derived their inspiration from animals. cute animals, as is common in Japan…however their new line of pouches are hard to be called cute, that is if you’re a common human being and not a sea biologist… Their new line is called YOU+MORE!scary!

Instead of cuddly dogs or heart warming pandas, they chose deep sea creatures as their inspiration. And when I think of deep sea creatures this comes to mind:

Cuddly and heart warming it isn’t…but let’s see what they came up with and we’ll include a picture of the original eh monster.

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the frill shark

 

What da ya know…you can clean your smartphone screen with its mouth!

 

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The men dako (octopus)

 

You can actually fit quite a lot in this octopus due to its flexible body.

 

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The yeti crab

 

It will connect to your back pack with its claws.

 

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Leptocephalus

 

You can actually operate your smartphone when it’s in the pouch!

 

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They sell for 2,156 yen, and they are light, so shipping won’t hurt your wallet either.

If you’re not in the market for a pouch, but dig the deep sea theme, then what do you think of these deep sea cups?

This is how they look….but when you poor a hot beverage in it…..

 

 

 

The cups can be ordered to be delivered monthly and each month you’ll receive a different cup until you’ve collected all six…you can’t however decide in what order they will appear.

Not into deep sea animals, but dogs instead?

 

The mopdog!

Ha ha this is why we love  Japanese consumer products!

 

 

Serge Roso JWS

Japanwebshopping.com gets a Spring make-over.

It’s May, the flowers bloom, the birds lay eggs, the smell of fresh green grass tickles your prefrontal cortex….memories from  happy times are triggered and a feeling of nostalgia flows through your body. Life is good.  But May isn’t just a month of memories, it’s also a month of renewal, new wallpapers are chosen, Ikea is busier than ever and websites get a sunny make-over. Japanwebshopping has been sporting a very dark look, yeah we are freaks and we’re proud of it! Problem is that it was maybe a bit too otaku and scared away the casual shopper. We went to work and created a lighter and easier accessible site, while still holding on to our beloved black and gray (that we are great Yohji Yamamoto fans is something that goes without saying).

Let us know what you think about it, your opinion greatly matters to us.

japanwebshopping

Hirano JWS

 

Men’s fashion with a Meiji era twist.

When you say “Meiji”, most folks immediately think of Japan’s number one confectionery maker Meiji from Japan’s best selling Meiji Chocolate.

 

When you ask a Japanese person though (well one younger than 20..) they’ll tell you that Meiji is an era in Japanese history which ran from 1868 till  1912, which was the time that emperor Meiji (real name:Mutsuhito), took over from the Shogun(Tokugawa) and announced the beginning of a new era. The name Meiji means “Enlightened Rule”…now that’s a election slogan!

But being much more than just a political slogan,  Meiji  really brought some immediate changes to the Japanese, first of all  the  city of Kyoto lost its title of capital city , which went to Tokyo, hissy fit throwing Geisha were common sight on the Kyoto streets.

geisha’s anger by candy-quackenbush

Modernization finally reached Japan when they started to put keen interest into foreign industry, medicine, trade, army, science  and engineering leading to Japan becoming Asia’s first industrialized  country. Cool beans yeah, but what made the common “always thinking about food” Japanese most happy was the arrival of curry introduced by the British (thank god they didn’t introduce Black pudding). The Japanese loved it so much that they named it one of their national dishes… We at JWS love curry, we love it so much that we dedicated a page on our website to it check.

Fashion house IKIJI has used the Meiji era as their inspiration for their Fall line, an interesting concept as the Meiji era is often seen as the time that traditional Japan transitioned  to modern Japan with its western look. This becomes very obvious when you see their line-up and the way they portrait their models. The round glasses and hair do’s are reminiscent to the Meiji era.

 

 

 

We are also very impressed by their summer line-up:

Their quality and eye to detail is astonishing , really don’t take our word for it, check out this T-shirt with a longer front or as they call it an Apron-shirt with a modern written version of the Kanji “Nanten”or Southern Sky.

You can find their clothes here and pictures of their collections here

Fashion is all about combining, IKIJI’s clothes combine with almost everything due to their simplicity and introvert uniqueness…My favorite Autumn look has been decided, I wear the shirt above, with a black jacket, Lee HI-STANDARD SKINNY　and my newly recent acquired Rick Owens/ Adidas spring blade high.

40,000 yen at Mercari online shopping

Or when I want to go casual, with these Adidas ignites…you can see a pattern here right….well these Springblades are soooo comfy that’s why.

$85,- on ebay

I love Autumn because you’re not restricted by the weather what you want to wear, let us know about your favorite Autumn outfit!

Serge Roso  jws

Japanwebshopping.com